Job Hunting In Digital Age: Freelance Writing Vs Full-Time Job
The dynamics of job hunting has changed a lot in the past two decades, and you can blame the Internet for it. But the fact is it has changed for the good. So there’s no reason to crib. Unlike the 80s, employers are now deploying automated recruiters to cherry-pick the potential candidates by crawling the web. It works on an algorithm which looks for a particular set of keywords on the candidates' resume. Now, there are a number of ways to amplify your chances of getting picked by the recruiters, but that will be a far-fetched idea for you if you cannot decide which kind of job to pursue.
As a writer, you may get two options. It's either freelancing or a full-time job, and both have their own set of pros and cons. So it may get little tricky for you to choose a career path that will lead you to your career goals. You may choose freelance writing over a full-time job since it offers you with flexibility as well as potentially higher income. A salaried full-time job, on the other hand, provides you with a stable income and some lucrative employee benefits. So you can see it is not an easy task to choose between freelance writing and a full-time job.
There are few factors that you need to consider when you are comparing these two options.
1. Stability
This factor plays a major role when you are making a choice between freelance writing job and a full-time job. A lot of people like a stable source of income. And if you notice carefully, a fixed salary that arrives on a scheduled time every month is more satisfying to some people than dealing with contracts. There's a sense of security in a full-time job. However, it is foolish to think that full-time jobs are permanent. If a significant issue arises, this salaried position can be eliminated.
2. Flexibility
An employee with a full-time job may enjoy a secured position in an office, but a freelancer enjoys much more flexibility when it comes to choosing the work. A freelance writer has the liberty to accept or decline any paper that doesn't suit his will. Freelancers are also flexible with their work schedule. They report directly to their clients, and they usually do the work which pleases them. So with freelance writing, there's a career satisfaction. An employee with a salaried job may not enjoy this kind of flexibility, and they are answerable to their employers.
3. Pay scale
An employee with a full-time job has a fixed salary, and he enjoys very fewer opportunities to get an increment. Freelance writers, on the other hand, can increase their pay for an assignment or start earning more by taking on more work from the clients. As they develop a reputation in the market for their quality of writing and dedication, clients may start paying them more to secure their services. However, a freelancer may need to give away some of his income as self-employment tax, but there is huge scope for earning a high income by working as a freelance writer.
4. Privileges
While freelancers enjoy certain flexibility and the opportunity to earn more, there are certain privileges that serve the employees with a full-time job as compensation. These privileges come with the salaried positions that include provident fund, health insurance, retirement plans, etc. A freelance writer can buy certain privileges according to his needs. While for a salaried position the organization takes care of the privileges, a freelance writer has no one but himself to take the responsibility of the privileges.
If you are seriously considering making a choice between freelance writing and a full-time job, these factors can help you make your decision. However, this needs to be mentioned that if you are in college and you wish to be a writer in the future, you can start as a freelance writer during the academic years. This helps you gather some experience as well as allows you to earn some money. Also when you are going for a full-time job, the freelancing experience can make your resume look better than the rest.
Now after considering the factors, you must be wondering, it would have been better if we could provide you with a list of pros and cons. That would have helped you make the decision. Well, if you are still struggling to decide which a better option is, here’s something simpler for you.
Pros and Cons of Freelancing:
Pros |
Cons |
You can create your own schedule as you are your own boss |
There's no steady flow of income. Also, you need to be extra cautious while accepting a job. Some clients may not pay you after receiving the task |
You don’t need to go to an office which saves a lot of fuel expenses |
There's no fixed employee privilege. Since you are your own boss, there's no one to offer you with privileges like health insurance, retirement plan, etc. |
You take your office with you. Wherever you go, it becomes your office. Be it a café, a park, or a friend’s place |
You may be your own boss, but you are not writing for yourself. So the satisfaction might not be the same as you expect |
You can work peacefully without any interruption. At an office, you may get to hear people chattering, the ringing of the phones, and other noises that could break your concentration |
Working from home can hamper your productivity. Since you become too comfortable at your job, it may ruin your precision. You lack discipline when you work as a freelancer |
You have the liberty to work according to your need. If you don't feel like working during the day, you can shift your work to the time which suits you best |
There's certain job insecurity. You don't know how long it is going to last. Besides, there are lots of freelancers in the field which makes it a competitive business. |
Pros and Cons of Full-time Job
Pros |
Cons |
You can enjoy holidays, go on a vacation and get a sick leave with pay |
You become comfortable with your work and salary which makes you stagnant. You also become more mechanical as you repeat the same work every day |
If you are an experienced full-time employee, you have a better chance of getting a promotion |
You never really find out where your true potential lies. With the same amount of work, you forget to explore the other skills of yours |
You are eligible for employee benefits like health insurance, retirement plan, etc. |
You don’t really get to know where your work is going. Your boss asks you to do something, and you as an employee get it done. You don’t really understand why you are doing a certain job |
You have a fixed schedule, and you don't need to work beyond that. So you can enjoy that free time by doing things you love |
As you gather more experience at a full-time job, you start to lose interest in looking for other jobs. So job hunting becomes difficult for you |
You get a fixed salary every month. With a steady income, you can plan things for you future while paying for all your expenses |
Working for the same employer over the years makes your resume look dull. It lacks variety, and you cannot mention other skills or talents, as you haven't used them in practical. |
Now if you notice, both the options have a certain set of pros and cons, and interestingly, they all are equally significant when you are making a choice between these two. While some may choose freelance writing as they provide flexibility in the work, the rest may choose full-time writing job as they provide stability. In a nutshell, both have their own advantages and disadvantages. It is up to you to decide which career will suit your requirements best.
Are You Willing To Be A Freelance Writer? NerdyTurtlez.com Is Here To Provide You with The Opportunity
NerdyTurtlez.com is the ultimate destination for the people who aspire to be freelance writers. If you are one of the budding writers who want to earn a decent amount of money while working from the comfort of their homes, then NerdyTurtlez.com is the right place for you. We already have hundreds of writers from various parts of the world who are working with us as freelance writers. If you have the potential and the knowledge, you can also start your career as a freelance writer with us.
Here’s how you can become a freelance writer at NerdyTurtlez.com.
Sign Up: To become a member of the NerdyTurtlez team, you need to fill up the online form to sign up with us. This is absolutely free. You will be asked to provide authentic details at this step.Give the Nerd Test: There will be a small test to evaluate your knowledge and linguistic skills. This test helps us to select the right candidate.
Receive your orders: If you are selected, you'll be informed, and then you will start receiving orders from our clients. Simple, isn’t it?
As a freelance writer you at NerdyTurtlez.com, you can also enjoy the following facilities.
Convenient work structure
We allow our writers to work according to their convenience. If you feel comfortable to work during the night hours, you can set your working hours accordingly.
Secured job
We have an extended network of clients, so we can provide you work throughout the entire year. Freelancing is considered as an uncertain career, but at NerdyTurtlez.com, we have proven it wrong.
Choose the project you want to do
We allow our writers to choose the project that they want to work on. We do not force our freelance writers to do the project in which they don’t feel confident. So you can have the liberty to choose your work.
Lucrative pay
At NerdyTurtlez.com, a freelance writer is paid more than the industry standards. You won’t get a better pay as a freelance writer anywhere else. So if you’re looking for a decent pay by working as a freelance writer, NerdyTurtlez.com is the right place for you.
On-time payment
At NerdyTurtlez.com, we make sure all our freelance writers are paid on time. We understand that the lucrative pay is one the major motivations for your work. For this reason, we clear all due payments of our freelance writers within the first ten days of the month which no other portal can offer.
So what are you waiting for? Join NerdyTurtlez.com today!